Riley Leonard, the architect of Notre Dame’s incredible natty run in the previous season. Win or not, Leonard at least showed a program having a 37-year-old silverware drought to dream. A dream that Marcus Freeman is trying to create and which could be tougher with Leonard’s absence. Leonard, meanwhile, is preparing for the NFL draft after an incredible season on his back. But, before his name is called in the draft, he has to prove it in front of the scouts.

Several issues plague the ace QB in reaching the coveted top spot of the draft. First and foremost, he needs more muscle mass to back up his frame. Then there are questions too about his arm talent; add that to his struggles as he failed to capitalize on his third-down passes. Deep throws are another area where the player needs a lot of work. All these factors combined have made him at most a middle-round or later-round pick. His recent decision not to participate in the 40-yard dash in Notre Dame’s Pro Day is building to be another factor. When asked about the snub, he had a simple reply: “Everyone thinks I’m fast, so we’re going to keep it that way.” Marcus Freeman, however, hasn’t taken Leonard’s abstinence from participating in the dash too seriously.

When asked about the same, he only had words of praise for the QB. “I think Riley is such a unique individual where off the field he is just a tremendous young person, a great young man. But on the field, he is a fierce competitor, a guy that I believe has an extremely high ceiling and room to improve. And I think that’s what I love about Riley Leonard. He is a heck of a football player and a heck of a leader. But I think in the future he’s just going to continuously get better, and I look forward to seeing how he continues to grow”.

Well, despite the various shortcomings that are being highlighted in Leonard’s game. There are still areas where Riley Leonard comes up trumps and performs incredibly. His red zone protection of the football is something he didn’t disappoint the previous season. Then, he tends to climb and slide into the pocket to evade and elude defenders. Which again works in his favor. Additionally, he is undoubtedly a persistent runner and has an immense success rate in short-yard carries.

Leonard’s last season is also a testament to his grit and desire to perform. He not only passed for 2,861 yards with a decent 66.7% pass completion rate. But also ran for 906 yards, scoring a whopping 17 touchdowns. Even in the Ohio State final game that Notre Dame lost, Riley Leonard didn’t quite disappoint. In that game, he had 255 passing yards for 2 touchdowns and was the leading rusher for Notre Dame, scoring another touchdown.

Riley Leonard clears his stance on absence from the 40-yard dash

Leonard did participate in the NFL Combine and showcased his passing ability, but he might have also shaken off the tag of ‘just a runner.’ That being said, he didn’t participate in the 40-yard dash in the Combine either. At the time, people speculated that the player would eventually showcase that in the Pro Day of Notre Dame. But that wasn’t the case. Riley, in an interview given to NBC Sports, expanded on the issue further.

“I think when you pull up my tape, yeah, my best playing is when I’m playing fast; my feet are fast. If you pull up my two-minute tape and the second half when we’re down, and we need to score, that’s when I’m playing at my best. I think NFL offense really complements my feet and makes me play fast, especially when you’re under center.”  

Leonard did impress the NFL scouts at the combine and is building towards the actual day, i.e., the NFL draft. Currently, he is considered an ‘average backup’ if his prospect grade at NFL.com is to be believed. His production score is ranked 12 in the NFL Combine, and the QB’s total score is ranked 8. That essentially means that he may not be the most sought-after quarterback. Still, there would be teams out there who would make a bet on him and transition him into their squad gradually.